Spook - Predators
**_Hi everyone! This is sort of a reboot of the original series I started to post on Nifty about 5 years ago. Same copyright rules apply. And there are some homoerotic scenes on some chapters, so if you don't like that kind of stuff or if you're not supposed to read that kind of stuff, then go find something else to read.
Links on my email and blogspot are below. I appreciate your comments and I answer all emails and questions, so please don't hesitate to contact me. And check out my other stories as well (links on the right).
There may be some footnotes on this chapter that may help you understand some of the things that you may not be familiar with. Enjoy!_ c",)**
Spook
Chapters
Prologue
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Funny Feelings
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The Third Roommate
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Closet Graffiti
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Legends
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Making Contact
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Spook
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Necrophobia
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Names and Possibilities
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Predators
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Big Mistake
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Bits and Pieces
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Payback
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The Picture on the Wall
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A Taste of Heaven
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Break
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Déjà Vu
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One
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Reprieve
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Hamlo Dow
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Jay
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Ghost's Kiss
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Face-Off
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Indifference
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Body Snatcher
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Limbo
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Havel
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Shards
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Epilogue
Spook
Chapter 9
Predators
A BLAST of cold wind greeted Charlie when he opened the door to his room. He knew instantly what that meant.
He walked in, closed the door and threw his bag on his bed. Danny still had a class and won't be back for a few more minutes.
"You know, you really should stop stealing kisses from me," Charlie said with a grin.
Spook appeared right before him and said, "Well, if you give me permission, it wouldn't be called stealing anymore, would it?"
Charlie laughed softly, then quickly changed the topic.
"So," he said, "you still don't recall any of the names I gave you?"
"No, I don't," said Spook. "I thought some of the names sort of ring a bell, but I'm not sure if it's because I knew them before or if it's because it was my name."
"At least it's a start," said Charlie.
"What did you find out about them?" asked Spook.
"Nada," said Charlie. "It's like they fell off the face of the planet. Nobody I talked to ever knew them."
Spook sighed. Charlie looked at him pitifully. It had been over four weeks since Joseph gave him the list and they were getting desperate to get some information regarding those people.
"It was a long time ago, Spook," said Charlie, consoling Spook. "The only way I could find out any information about any of those names would be to find someone who actually lived here during that time. And it's not that easy to do considering that a lot of those people are either dead or about to be. We just have to be patient. I know, eventually, we'll be able to find someone who knows you."
"Yeah," Spook said sadly. "When they die and I see them right before they go off to heaven or wherever the hell they would go to."
They fell silent. Charlie wanted to say something to comfort Spook, but he couldn't find the right words.
Then, they heard a knock on the door and it gently swung open. Oliver popped out of the open door.
"Hi," he greeted with a sweet smile.
"Hey," Charlie nodded. "What's up?"
"I just saw you coming in and I thought this would be the perfect time to invite you," said Oliver.
"Invite me where?"
"Well, there is this group that I'm a part of," replied Oliver. "It's composed of students who excel in Math and other Sciences. We regularly meet to exchange ideas and share new innovations within our respective fields of expertise. And since I can see you're into Math and you come highly recommended by your Math professor, I thought you might be interested in joining our group as well."
"Is there a name for this group?" Charlie probed.
"No, nothing official or anything," answered Oliver. "We're just kinda like a bunch of geeks sharing ideas and stuff."
Charlie looked at Spook who was fiercely shaking his head. Charlie almost laughed when he saw Spook so still and quiet as if Oliver would see or hear him if he moved or spoke a word.
"Well," said Oliver, breaking Charlie's silence, "if you're interested, just text me. We'll be meeting next Tuesday and you're welcome to join." He smiled again before going out of the door and closing it gently.
"Don't even think about it," said Spook. "That asshole is bad news, I'm telling you."
"Oh c'mon," Charlie retorted. "Sure, he creeps me out sometimes. But he has been nothing but nice to me. I have no reason to doubt him. Besides, this group might be good for me, you know... to expand my horizon."
Spook looked as if he was about to argue but he suddenly faded as the door opened again and Danny walked in.
"What was that creep doing in here?" Danny said as he entered the room.
Charlie chuckled. "Finally! Something that both you and Spook agree on."
Danny smiled at him. "Talking to Spook again, I see."
"These days, it seems like it's all I do," said Charlie seriously. "My real roommate barely has enough time to say hi to me."
He looked at Danny intently, but Danny refused to return his gaze. For the past few weeks, Danny had been making himself scarce. He would usually come home just before curfew, take a shower and go straight to bed. In the mornings, he would wake up early and was usually gone before Charlie even opened his eyes. They even rarely ate together in the dining hall anymore. And Charlie was missing him terribly.
"I, uh," said Danny. "I'm sorry I, uh..."
Charlie waved his hand and said, "Shut it. I know you're busy. And it's not like I have monopoly over your time. It's cool. But since you're here now and it's still early, what do you say we hang out for a bit?"
"I can't," said Danny. "I'm sorry. I promised Abby I'd take her out tonight and I'm running late as it is."
Charlie stood up looking really pissed. Danny could feel how much Charlie was trying not to blow off his top. Charlie started to walk towards the door.
"Charlie," Danny called out. "I'm..."
"You know what," Charlie cut him off. "It's okay. I don't care. Go be with your girlfriend." Then he walked out the door leaving Danny alone in the room feeling like shit.
Charlie was fuming and he decided to take a walk... a long walk. He didn't quite understand what happened between him and Danny. He was feeling like he was losing Danny, which was weird considering that he never really had him in the first place. And he was desperately trying to reach out to him, to get him back, but Danny wouldn't even try.
He felt a tear falling on his cheek. He quickly wiped it off with his hand and breathed deeply to control his emotions.
He walked to the Sunken Garden and sat on one of the benches. He watched some guys playing frisbee and he remembered the first day he met Danny when they went and sat there together. Every little part of the whole campus just reminded him of his happier times with Danny. Times that he was missing so much lately.
He tried to forget about Danny by concentrating on solving Spook's mystery. But no matter how much absorbed he was, Danny still lingered in his mind like some leech sucking all his other memories away and leaving him devoid of any other feelings other than sorrow and despair.
He bit his lip and breathed deeply when he felt that he was about to shed a tear again. And then his cellphone rang. He took it from his pocket and looked at the caller ID. A small smile crept across his face.
"Carlitos! Why haven't I heard from you in three weeks?" asked the caller.
"Hey, grandma," Charlie said. For some reason, his grandma always chose to call him by the Spanish version of his name. "I'm sorry. I've been quite busy with everything."
"Well, I haven't seen you in months," said his grandma. "The least you could do is let me hear from you."
"I know, grandma," said Charlie. "And again I'm so sorry. I guess I just got caught up with the whole college thing."
"Oh well, I guess I could understand that," his grandma laughed softly. "So, how have you been?"
Charlie knew he needed to lie even though he knew his grandma would see right through that. But he couldn't tell anyone how he really felt.
How could he?
DANNY was getting worried.
Charlie left in such a bad mood and he hadn't heard from his roommate yet. He felt so bad that he called Abby to cancel their date. Then he waited for Charlie to come back. A couple of hours passed and Danny was still waiting for Charlie to come back.
He tried calling Charlie, but his line was busy. He tried calling again an hour later and the phone was already off.
He got more worried as darkness enfolded every corner of the room.
A few minutes before curfew, Charlie entered the room. Charlie just looked at him for a few seconds without any expression on his face before he went on with his nightly rituals.
A few minutes later, Charlie tucked himself in without even a single word being said between them. And Danny was left looking at the boy he so longed to hold in his arms again. But he couldn't...
How could he?
TUESDAY came and Charlie had already forgotten about Oliver's invitation.
But Oliver was persistent. Early Tuesday morning, he reminded Charlie. At lunch, he reminded him again. By late afternoon, Charlie decided he'd just go and get it over with and then planned to tell Oliver that he was thankful for being invited but he didn't feel that he belonged there.
Spook warned Charlie again not to go. But he assured him that he would be alright and that he would take care of himself.
At exactly 7PM, Oliver knocked on Charlie's door to pick him up for the meeting. He made Charlie sign a Late Permit1 before introducing him to Marcus. Marcus, Oliver told Charlie, was a 4th year Chemistry student and was exceptionally brilliant in that field.
Charlie was ushered to Oliver's car and they went to the UP Teacher's Village2, where he was introduced to half a dozen other guys. He couldn't remember their names because he wasn't really interested in getting to know them anyways.
Just when he was about to make an excuse to get back to the dorm early, he saw a familiar face.
"Rommel!" he called out.
Rommel was looking as out of place as he was. He turned to Charlie and immediately gave him a smile. Then, he quickly walked up to him.
"I am so glad to finally see someone I know!" exclaimed Rommel. "Who invited you?"
"Oliver. RA in Kalayaan," Charlie answered. "How about you?"
"Sam. The short dark guy over there," Rommel answered. "I met him after I won the computer programming competition a couple of weeks ago. He said I'm exceptional in computer technology. I'm assuming you were brought here because you're a Math wiz."
"Or so they say," Charlie chuckled.
"So, what do you think they're really up to here?" asked Rommel.
"Taking over the world, probably," Charlie smirked.
He noticed that Oliver and Marcus were talking to Sam and then they began to walk in their direction. Sam excused Rommel and gently ushered him to another room while Marcus and Oliver began talking with Charlie, telling him all about their group and what was in store for him if he decides to permanently join.
"You know," Marcus said, "most professors are too lazy to create new exams each semester. So, they usually just reuse the same exams after a few semesters. And the great part about it is that we have a collection of exams from more than two dozen different professors in every department! And you'll have access to all those resources if you join us."
"Aside from that," Oliver offered, "a lot of the professors that you'll encounter used to be part of this group as well. And if you're a member, and you need favors from them, it'll be a lot easier."
Charlie just kept on smiling and nodding his head. After a while, the two got tired of selling their group to Charlie. Marcus excused himself to get some drinks while Oliver stayed with Charlie.
When Marcus got back, he offered a glass to Charlie.
"Sorry, I don't drink," Charlie declined.
"This is just punch," urged Marcus.
"I'm really sorry," Charlie said shaking his head. "I'm allergic to a lot of things and that is one of them," he lied.
Marcus was about to argue some more but Sam asked everyone to gather around the living room because his presentation was about to start.
Charlie immediately went and sat next to Rommel who looked as if he hadn't slept in days.
"He probably had one too many punch," he thought.
Sam began his presentation about the newest digital imaging software that was yet to be released in the market. He explained the features of the software and also demonstrated how to manipulate images using it.
"So, let's say you write down these most commonly used words by Rommel," Sam said as he typed in 'sorry'. "Instantly, these letters are treated as images and you could manipulate them as images. You could stretch them, askew them, flip them, or whatever." Sam demostrated these as he was speaking. "The brilliance of this is that you could just click on the image as if it was a simple text and edit it right on the spot, while maintaining the manipulations that you've already done earlier," he said as he deleted the 's' and replaced it with a 'w'.
Suddenly, the stretched, skewed and mirror-imaged letters looked awfully familiar. He took his wallet from his pants and pulled out the hard copy of the writings in his closet that he always carried around with him.
"Holy crap... that's it!" he said, trying to control himself from shouting.
Rommel felt his excitement and lazily looked at him. He suddenly felt embarrassed when he saw some of the other guys also looking at him with curiosity.
He jumped up and said, "I, uh... I'm sorry. I gotta go."
Rommel grabbed his hand and said, "Take me with you... please..."
He helped Rommel get up and they both started to walk out of the house.
Oliver ran after them. "Why don't you wait for a few more minutes. The presentation is almost over, then we'll just talk a bit and then we'll go home."
"I'm sorry," Charlie said. "Something urgent came up and I really have to go." He quickly dragged Rommel out of the house and waved on the taxi that was passing by.
He knew Rommel lived on Campus as well, but he had to get directions from him, which was a little hard to do because Rommel couldn't keep his eyes open.
"What the hell happened to you," he said.
Rommel briskly shook his head. "I think I was drugged. I drank just one glass of punch and now I feel woozy. Didn't you drink one?"
"Nah," Charlie said. "For some reason, I really couldn't trust those people. I didn't know why... but now I do," he said with clenched teeth.
When they got to Rommel's house, he helped the boy walk to his door. Rommel's legs were so wobbly that they almost fell before they reached the door.
Charlie rang the doorbell and waited for someone to answer the door. An old man opened the door and was quite shocked to see Rommel barely standing up on his own. But when he looked at Charlie's face, the color on his face drained as if he had seen a ghost.
"Uh... hello sir," Charlie managed to say. "My name is Charlie and I'm Rommel's classmate. We were kinda invited to the wrong party and I think Rommel drank something he probably shouldn't."
"Could you help me get him in his room?" the old man said when he regained his composure.
Charlie got Rommel in his room and lay him on the bed. He didn't notice that the old man was looking intently at him with awe and wonder.
"Thank you for bringing him here," said the old man afterwards. "I'll take care of him now. Do you have any transportation to get back home?"
"The taxi is waiting for me outside," Charlie smiled. "And I'd better go now if I'm gonna beat the curfew."
He quickly left and got in the taxi, totally oblivious of the old man's stare as the taxi drove off.
IT WAS ALMOST 9PM and Danny was worried that Charlie might not make it before curfew.
When he got home, Charlie wasn't there anymore. He had no idea where his roommate was. There was no note or anything. He desperately wanted to text Charlie... even call him. But Charlie still wasn't speaking to him and he really didn't know how to talk to Charlie without breaking down and confessing everything.
Finally, he decided to go to sleep. But he couldn't. His mind was still on Charlie. He couldn't help but wonder where his roommate went.
Did he have a date? Is he coming back home tonight or will he be spending it with his date? Are they gonna fuck?
Ugly thoughts filled his mind... tormenting him... tearing him apart.
"Fuck!" he cursed under his breath. "Where the fuck are you?"
Then, he heard someone inserting a key to their door. He saw Charlie's silhouette entering the dark room. He pretended to be asleep.
Charlie proceeded to his computer and switched his study lamp on. Danny heard the computer starting up. He heard Charlie pounding the keyboard and frantically clicking the mouse like he was eager to get something done as quickly as possible.
A few minutes later, he heard the soft hum of the printer.
"Damn!" he heard Charlie say softly. "This is totally brilliant! I gotta hand it to you, Spook. You really don't make anything easy for anyone."
A couple of months ago, Danny would've been terrified hearing Charlie talking about a ghost. But now, he was just annoyed. Jealousy was eating him up.
"He goes off without so much as a note," he thought to himself. "Not even a text or any word at all where he was. Then he comes back and all he thinks about is Spook! Always Spook! Did he think about me even for just a second today? Did he even think about me ever?"
A few moments later, he felt Charlie getting ready for bed. Then he heard the creaks as Charlie got on the bed and put his blanket over his body. He could feel Charlie's gaze on him, but he didn't dare open his eyes to meet his.
He heard Charlie sigh before his roommate turned off the study lamp. In a few minutes, Charlie's breathing became rhythmic and he knew that his roommate was already sleeping.
He opened his eyes to look at Charlie and admired the sleeping boy once again... just like he did every single night for the past month. Just like he would do tomorrow and he would probably do for as long as they stayed in the same room together, which, if he got his way, would be forever.
He knew he would be dreaming about Charlie again. If only real life would be as simple and uncomplicated as his dreams, he and Charlie would be together. And they would be happy.
If only...
"HEY CHARLIE, wait up!" Rommel hollered as he tried to catch up with Charlie. Charlie was so eager to get home and try to decipher more of the writings. So far he was able to decode quite a few letters, numbers and other symbols. He knew that once he got all of them, it would be easy for him to finally break the code.
"Hey," Charlie turned around and waited for Rommel. "Sorry, I didn't see you."
"I'd just like to thank you for rescuing me the other night," Rommel said as they started to walk together. "I probably would've been the night's entertainment if you didn't take me home."
"What do you mean?" asked Charlie.
"My granduncle, who you met last night, told me that he heard of that group," answered Rommel. "It seems that it has been around for quite a while. When he was still a student here in the 60s, his friend got invited and was almost raped."
"Raped?"
"Yeah. It seems that those assholes are like a cult," explained Rommel. "They suck you in with their brilliance. They give you a lot of perks. They make sure you get the best grades and the best jobs after college. But before you get there, you'd have to be their bitch for the first couple of years; doing everything they want you to do, including sexual favors for any members, current and previous."
"Jesus!" was all Charlie could say.
"I know," said Rommel. "So I really owe you a lot. It was a good thing you didn't drink the punch. We probably would've both been sworn and initiated last night if you had."
Different thoughts ran through Charlie's head. Oliver and Marcus were both RAs in the dorm and they could really make his life hell while he stayed there. And if it was true that a lot of the professors that he would encounter were former members, that would mean he'd probably have to transfer schools if he wanted to graduate.
"Shit!" he cursed under his breath.
"What?" Rommel asked.
"I'm sorry," said Charlie. "It's just that if what they told me last night were true and we don't join them, we'd probably have one hell of a time trying to pass our courses." Then he told Rommel about what Oliver and Marcus told him.
"Fuck!" said Rommel. They both fell silent for a while before Rommel spoke again. "Well, good thing they're just science geeks. If I don't make it in Comp Sci, I guess I could always take Philosophy. My granduncle teaches in the Philosophy Department and I know most of the professors there," he smiled.
Charlie sighed and then returned Rommel's smile. "You're right," he said. "Fuck it. If they're gonna make my life a living hell, bring it on."
They walked in silence for a while. They were already near the dorm when Charlie saw Danny's car pulling up on the parking lot.
"I guess the only problem is that I'd have a couple more people I would need to avoid in the dorm from now on," Charlie sighed. He said goodbye to Rommel before getting inside the dorm.
He saw Danny in the lobby and their eyes met. Danny looked away after a few seconds and went straight to the dining hall instead. Charlie proceeded to their room.
It was still quite early and he couldn't see anybody in the hallways of his floor. Before he got to his room, though, Oliver and Marcus popped out of Oliver's room and called him.
"Hey Charlie," said Oliver, "come here for a second. We need to talk to you."
"Sorry guys," said Charlie. "I have tons of things to do and I need to start now if I'm gonna finish all of them by tomorrow," he lied.
Oliver and Marcus started to walk towards him. Charlie tensed. He knew if it came down to it, he could beat the crap out of both guys. But he would avoid it as much as he could.
"Listen," Oliver said when he came close to Charlie. "I know it didn't look good when your friend ended up drunk as hell Tuesday night. But it's not what we're all about."
Oliver moved even closer to Charlie. "And I'd really, really like it if you join us," he stressed every single word. "It could be mutually beneficial, you know."
"Thanks, Oliver," Charlie said looking fiercely at Oliver. "But I really don't think I'd fit in your group. You see, I love being able to choose for myself. I love my freedom more than any perks you could throw my way. And if I'm gonna do something, I'd really rather do it because I want to, not because I have to," he said firmly.
"Charlie, Charlie, Charlie," Oliver laughed softly. "You should know that I'm really a very nice person to my friends. But you would never wanna be my enemy." He leaned to Charlie's ear and whispered, "And I don't take rejections well." Then he moved back quickly and threw some powder on Charlie's face.
Charlie choked on the powder and tried to get it off his face. But he had already inhaled and swallowed some of it. He looked fiercely at Oliver and tried to take a swing at him, but his muscles wouldn't cooperate. His legs began to give and he felt Marcus' strong arms supporting his weight.
He heard Oliver tell Marcus to quickly get him into Oliver's room. Marcus threw him on the bed and started touching his body.
"You're right," he heard Marcus say. "This boy's got a killer bod. We're gonna have so much fun," Marcus laughed.
"Are you sure he's gonna be awake the whole time?" asked Oliver.
"It would seem like a dream to him, but yeah, he would be awake," answered Marcus.
Charlie tried to look at the two men standing before him. He could see them but it was hazy. His arms and legs felt like lead and he couldn't move any part of his body.
"And he would feel everything, right?" asked Oliver.
"Magnified at least 10 times," said Marcus with a hint of pride.
"You are such a genius," said Oliver before he gave Marcus a deep, wet kiss.
Marcus began feeling Oliver's body. He tucked his hand under Oliver's shirt and slowly took it off. His lips travelled to the side of Oliver's neck to his ear, while his hand massaged Oliver's chest and pinched his nipples.
Oliver let out a sigh of pleasure as his dick began to tent underneath his shorts.
Marcus' tongue began to explore Oliver's chest, concentrating on the nipples, as his hand began to massage his rigid dick.
"Ooh, baby," moaned Oliver. "Suck that nipple... ahhh..."
Marcus took his face off Oliver's nipple just long enough to get his shirt off. Then he led his tongue down Oliver's flat stomach and circled it around the navel.
Marcus pulled down Oliver's shorts and briefs to free the aching erection trapped in there. He licked just below the cockhead, which sent shivers up Oliver's spine.
Oliver's cock was already leaking precum as Marcus continued to tease him some more by just licking and gently kissing the cockhead. But when Marcus tried to put the dick in his mouth, Oliver stopped him and pulled him to his feet.
"Not today, baby," said Oliver. "We have a virgin mouth to feed."
"I can have his ass, though, right?" asked Marcus.
Oliver kissed him and said, "He's our bitch tonight. We can both have his ass and mouth all night."
Marcus pulled down his shorts to reveal a very hard, thick cock. "Little Marky's gonna have a virgin ass tonight," he let out an evil laugh.
Charlie was terrified at what was happening. He wanted to scream for help but no sound came out of his mouth. Then Oliver knelt before the bed where he lay. He touched his face, down to his body and felt his cock from his pants.
"Hmm," Oliver said to him. "You're still soft. We should remedy that."
Oliver began licking his face, down to his neck. He felt Oliver's tongue licking his ear as a hand explored his body under his shirt.
"Fuck!" Oliver moaned in his ear. "You are too delicious..."
Marcus opened the buttons of Charlie's pants and unzipped his fly. Charlie felt his cock being massaged under his boxers. Then he felt a tongue and a pair of lips licking and sucking on his belly button.
"I want my cock in your mouth," Oliver whispered in his ear. "Then I'm gonna stick it in your tight ass."
Charlie was starting to panic. He tried to scream for help but only soft moans came out of his mouth.
Oliver stood up and aimed his rigid cock onto Charlie's lips.
Charlie looked menacingly at the big, hard cock as it slowly came near his face.
"Spook! Help me!" he screamed in his mind.
1 A Late Permit is a piece of paper signed by an RA so that a dormer could stay out an hour beyond the curfew. back
2 The UP Teacher's Village is a residential area that is actually part of the UP Campus, but is more like a subdivision. A lot of the students and teachers who couldn't get in the cheap dorms, or wished to live a little more comfortably, rent rooms or apartments there. back
**Other Stories
by Cyrus on Nifty
** Just One Night
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40 Days
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Guide to a New Life
****Hi! How's that for a cliffhanger? Haha! If you liked this chapter or if you have any questions for me, please don't hesitate to contact me. You may email me (just put the title of the story on the subject of the email so I'd know it's not spam) or you may want to put your comments here.
You may also want to read my blog or follow me on twitter.
**_
Thanks for reading this and please watch out for all the remaining chapters. Up next is Chapter 10 - Big Mistake.
-Cyrus**_